Lazy Girl Does "The Minimalist Challenge" - Day 22

As someone who lives with terribly fun insomnia, I can tell you that I am the BEST at creating relaxing bedtime routines. I could create a routine for anybody to follow and guarantee that they’ll be the most relaxed they’ll ever be before heading off into their Nodland. I’ve perfected the art of the bubble bath. I’ve tasted most of the best herbal teas. I’ve got my ‘calm’ music playlist at the ready. I’ve got twinkly fairy lights to put me in a bedtime mood. I could go on.

But what’s the point of going on? Because as magical as all these things are, they just do not work.

If the end goal of a ‘relaxing bedtime routine’ is to be asleep… well, HA! Jokes on the Minimalist Challenge because MY BODY DOESN’T RESPOND TO THAT SHIT! I can’t be a relaxed bunny, all ready in my pyjamas, smelling of lavender and listening to Jimi Hendrix’s sweet tones and then my brain starts to twitch. And all of a sudden I’m thinking. Thinking about the perfect reply to a message I’ve been putting off. I’m thinking of a new poems that I just HAVE to get down. I’m thinking of scenarios to things that will never happen but that I wish would. THIS the never ending COMPLETELY UN-RELAXING routine that I end up following at bedtime.

For the sake of this daily task. I’ll write down my bedtime routine for tonight.

Make tea (green)

Take off clothes

Put on pyjamas

Find glasses

Put on glasses

Find book

Put book down

Make bed

Lose book

Find book again

Get into bed

Find that laptop is under pillow

Forget all about book

Open laptop

Look at Facebook

Realise this isn’t relaxing so close Facebook

Wait for Game of Thrones to load

Realise that it probably won’t

Open a word document

Start writing this blog post

What!? Writing is relaxing for me

Especially when I get to talk about myself

Which I’ve been doing A LOT of recently

Oh DAMN MY TEA!

Okay, okay. So I realise this isn’t quite “relaxing”. But hey! It’s all about honesty and stuff. For me, relaxing at bedtime means not forcing being relaxed, that just gives my brain more of a reason to go “NO!” later. I just do what I feel like. And today I feel like drinking tepid tea and watching the buffering screen for Game of Thrones.